The 4 Movies Brad Pitt Wants to Erase from His Career—Guess Which One Tops the List!

Brad Pitt’s extensive filmography, filled with critically acclaimed performances in films like Fight Club (1999) and 12 Monkeys (1995), as well as box office hits such as World War Z (2013), has cemented his place as one of Hollywood’s most celebrated actors. However, not every project has met his expectations, and over the years, Pitt has openly discussed his regrets regarding certain roles. Among those, Troy (2004) stands out as the film he most likely wishes to erase from his career, alongside a few others he has also reflected on. This article explores Pitt’s career regrets, focusing on Troy while examining other contenders.

Context of Pitt’s Career and Regrets

Pitt’s journey in Hollywood began in the late 1980s with small television roles before catapulting to stardom with his breakthrough performance in Thelma & Louise (1991). By the early 2000s, he was one of the most sought-after actors, starring in numerous blockbusters. However, Pitt’s film choices were sometimes influenced by external factors, such as studio pressures and commercial obligations, rather than purely artistic preferences. Over the years, he has reflected on these choices, particularly in interviews from 2019 and 2022, revealing his dissatisfaction with certain films and the impact these decisions had on his career.

Evidence Pointing to Troy as the Primary Candidate

Among the films that Pitt regrets, Troy is often cited as the one he would “delete from history.” Directed by Wolfgang Petersen, Troy featured Pitt as Achilles in an adaptation of Homer’s Iliad. According to multiple sources, including Far Out Magazine and MovieWeb, Pitt has expressed significant regret about the film, even referring to it as the “worst project of his career” in various interviews. In a 2019 conversation with The New York Times, Pitt openly admitted, “I was disappointed in it,” acknowledging that the experience marked a turning point in his career. He added that it led him to focus on selecting projects that aligned more with his personal taste and artistic sensibilities, rather than those driven by commercial pressures.

Further elaborating on his experience, Pitt mentioned in a 2022 interview with SlashFilm, “It wasn’t painful, but I realized that the way that movie was being told was not how I wanted it to be.” He described the process as a realization that Troy’s commercial approach clashed with his artistic goals, highlighting his preference for more nuanced, “artier” projects. This misalignment between his desires and the film’s direction led him to reconsider his approach to future roles.

Comparison with The Devil’s Own

While Troy is the clear frontrunner for the film Pitt likely regrets most, The Devil’s Own (1997), which co-starred Harrison Ford, is also often mentioned as a project he found disappointing. According to an article on Far Out Magazine from 2022, Pitt referred to the film as his “most irresponsible” project, citing challenges during production and creative differences. These difficulties were compounded by tensions on set, with Entertainment Weekly reporting in 2023 that Harrison Ford had acknowledged clashes between himself and Pitt over the script and direction.

However, unlike Troy, The Devil’s Own doesn’t seem to have left Pitt with the same level of regret. Instead of wanting to erase it, Pitt has reflected on the experience as a learning process, acknowledging the difficulties but not dismissing the film outright. In contrast, Troy remains a project that, for Pitt, represents a significant misstep in his career.

Other Potential Contenders

Pitt has also reflected on some of his other roles with a sense of disappointment, though they don’t carry the same weight as Troy. For example, he has mentioned feeling dissatisfied with his performance in the second half of 12 Monkeys (1995), but this regret is specific to his acting rather than the film itself. 12 Monkeys remains critically acclaimed and earned Pitt an Oscar nomination, making it far less likely to be a candidate for deletion.

Additionally, Interview with the Vampire (1994) is another film Pitt has described as disappointing during production, with him questioning his decision to take the role. However, unlike Troy, this film isn’t framed as a regret he wants to erase from his career. The lack of a similar “delete from history” sentiment keeps Interview with the Vampire from competing with Troy in this regard.

Analysis of the Phrase “Delete from History”

While the phrase “delete from history” is frequently used in discussions of Pitt’s regret over Troy, it’s important to note that these words are not directly quoted from the actor himself. Instead, they represent an interpretation by Far Out Magazine in a 2022 article. Pitt has never explicitly stated that he wanted to erase Troy from his career, but his repeated disappointment with the film, especially in contrast to his career shift post-Troy, strongly suggests that the film is one he would prefer to forget.

Conclusion

Brad Pitt’s career is marked by both major successes and some notable regrets. While films like Fight Club, The Sixth Sense, and World War Z have solidified his status as one of Hollywood’s finest, projects like Troy stand out as missteps he likely wishes to undo. Although his reflections on these films, particularly Troy, reveal the complexities of an actor’s journey, they also highlight his evolution toward more selective, meaningful roles. As his career continues to evolve, these past regrets serve as stepping stones that shaped his pursuit of quality stories and a more fulfilling filmography.